Conor Oberst (Merge) is the richest collection of songs from Conor Oberst--via Bright Eyes, Desaparecidos, whatever--in a long time.

Pierce hasn't totally rejected quick tempos and piled-high productions, but in the context of the album, the livelier songs are actually the least effective.

An album as engrossing as it is sometimes unsettling.

The New Milford transplant has released a slew of solo albums, including the excellent new collection Man Overboard.

The collection's mood is occasionally bleak and her penchant for amusing vivacity never rears its head, but the soothing comportment of her introspection makes for pleasant listening in even the darkest of corners.

The duo's third album uses its fidgety rhythms and broad palette of synth sounds to create music that's perhaps subtler and more emotionally resonant than any they could hope to fashion using "real" instruments.

There's something of a jukebox feel to Apollo Sunshine's third album, despite the near-radioactive levels of reverb-hazy psychedelia throughout.

It's really not that complicated at all - it's just good fun.

Jumping from Sub Pop to Toronto-based Arts & Crafts, the band is as strong and endearing as ever on Kensington Heights.

Some connect better than others, and the album feels a little front-loaded, but it's still a treat to hear Malkmus get in touch with his inner guitar hero.

It’s an earnest homage to lean guitar rock with bluesy underpinnings.

Although the folk songs fit the theme of the album, they don't showcase Cooder's skills as a composer.

The jumble of languages and sounds gives La Radiolina the feel of a noisy, colorful street bazaar where there's chaotic beauty on the surface and a certain poetic logic that runs underneath.

It's dark and harrowing, but "Year Zero" is the most compelling and fully realized album Reznor has made since "Pretty Hate Machine."

With its varied sound and subtle optimism, Chrome Dreams II stands in marked contrast to Young’s more strident recent efforts, but at least he got around to sharing these dreams.

Pro Tools surprises because it features consistently powerful backing tracks, several built on the strings-and-scratchy-soul brilliance of Wu mastermind RZA.

The 47-year-old Oklahoma native alters that repertoire somewhat with That Don't Make me a Bad Guy, sticking to accessible, down-home rock even as his singing ranges from new directions to bland drains on his natural character.

With its varied sound and newly expansive songwriting, "Attack & Release" is a bold but entirely fitting way for the Black Keys to prove they know more than one way to make a statement.

With haunted, abstract songs that are about as easily grasped as passing specters or gusts of sea mist, the Good, the Bad and the Queen is a dream collaboration that sometimes feels like a nightmare.

While the overall arc is inspirational, the album takes an unflinchingly dark view of the civil rights struggle.

No one ought to begrudge Tweedy his hard-won peace of mind, but there's less of the emotional, or musical, turbulence here that made for such compelling listening on previous Wilco records.

The duo’s modern take on a classic sound runs throughout the new record, a worthy 13-song sophomore effort.

On her fifth CD, Bare Bones, the Georgia native puts her stamp on all-new material, and weaves an alluring tapestry of sonic elegance, vocal character and lyrical bite.

It's the most focused and cohesive album Adams has released in years.

Featuring 10 originals and three covers (including an unlisted version of 'Swing Low, Sweet Chariot'), the album is a showcase for Deschanel’s pipes and Ward’s clever musical arrangements.

The songs on Oracular Spectacular are considered and carefully constructed, and as a result, they’re taut, hooky and highly danceable, in a hipster-dance-party kind of way.

High points are overshadowed by the abundance of filler on Intoxication.

"Whaleheart" is sure to be one of the year's finest releases, which shouldn't come as news to anyone familiar with Callahan's singular, indelible songwriting.